Amish Redemption. Patricia Davids

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      Prison changed any man who entered those walls, but not always for the better. Joshua shrugged.

      His father hooked his thumbs through his suspenders. “You are home now, and for that we must all give thanks. Timothy, Noah, Samuel, the ground will not prepare itself for planting.”

      Joshua smiled. That was Daed—give thanks that his son was home for five minutes and then make everyone get to work.

      Joshua’s brothers slapped him on the back and started toward the waiting team. Timothy looked over his shoulder. “I want to hear all about the gangsters in the big house tonight.”

      “I didn’t meet any,” Joshua called after him, wondering where his brother had picked up such terms.

      “Not even one?” Noah’s mouth fell open in disbelief.

      “Nope.” Joshua grinned at his little brother’s crestfallen expression. Joshua had no intention of sharing the sights he’d seen in that inhuman world.

      “Come. Your mother is anxious to spoil you. She deserves her happiness today.”

      Joshua followed his father inside. Nothing had changed in the months Joshua had been away. The kitchen was spotless and smelled of cinnamon, fresh-baked bread and stout coffee. Standing with his eyes closed, he let the smells of home wash away the lingering scent of his prison cell. He was truly home at last.

      “Sit,” his mother insisted.

      He opened his eyes and smiled at her. She wasn’t happy unless she was feeding someone. She bustled about the kitchen getting cups and plates and dishing up thick slices of coffee cake. He took a seat at the table, but his father remained by the desk in the corner. He picked up a long white envelope. Turning to Joshua, he said, “Mother’s onkel Marvin passed away a few months ago.”

      Joshua frowned. “I don’t remember him.”

      His mother set a plate on the table. “You never met him. He left the Amish as a young man and never spoke to my family again.”

      “It seems Mother has inherited his property over by Hope Springs.” His father tapped the letter against his palm.

      “I didn’t even know where he lived. His lawyer said he was fond of me because I was such a happy child. Strange, don’t you think? Would you like kaffi or milk?” she asked with a beaming smile on her face.

      “Coffee. What kind of property did he leave you?”

      “Forty acres with a house and barn,” his father replied. “But the lawyer says the property is in poor repair. I was going to go to Hope Springs the day after tomorrow to look it over, but you know how I hate long buggy trips. Besides, I need to get the ground worked so we can plant. Joshua, why don’t you go instead? It would take a load off me, and it would give you a little time to enjoy yourself before getting behind a planter again.”

      Hope Springs was a day’s buggy ride from the farm. The idea of traveling wasn’t as appealing as it had once been, but doing something for his father was. “I’d be glad to go for you.”

      His mother’s smile faded. “But Joshua has only just gotten home, Isaac.”

      Joshua rose to his feet and planted a kiss on her cheek. “You have two whole days to spoil me with your wunderbar cooking before then. I’ll check out your property, and then I’ll be home for good.”

      “Do you promise?” she asked softly.

      He cupped her face in his palms. “I promise.”

      * * *

      “Mary, I have just the mann for you.”

      Resisting the urge to bang her head on the cupboard door in front of her, Mary Kaufman continued mixing the lemon cake batter in the bowl she held. “I don’t want a man, Ada.”

       Don’t want one. Don’t need one. How many ways can I say it before you believe me?

      Except for her adopted father, Nick Bradley, most of the men in Mary’s life had brought her pain and grief. However, the prospect of finding her a husband was her adopted grandmother’s favorite subject. As much as Mary loved Ada, this got old.

      “Balderdish! Every Amish woman needs a goot Amish husband.” Ada opened the oven door.

      “The word is balderdash.”

      Ada pulled a cake out using the folded corner of her black apron and dropped it on the stove top with a clatter. “Mein Englisch is goot. Do not change the subject. You will be nineteen in a few weeks. Do you want people to call you an alt maedel?”

      “I’ll be twenty, and I don’t care if people call me an old maid or not.”

      Ada frowned at her. “Zvansich?”

      “Ja. Hannah just turned four. That means I’ll be twenty.” Mary smiled at her daughter playing with an empty bowl and wooden spoon on the floor. She was showing her dog, Bella, how to make a cake. The yellow Lab lay watching intently, her big head resting on her paws. Mary could almost believe the dog was memorizing the instructions.

      Ada turned to the child. “Hannah, how old are you?”

      Grinning at her great-grandmother, Hannah held up four fingers. “This many.”

      Patting her chest rapidly, Ada faced Mary. “Ach! Then there is no time to lose. Delbert Miller is coming the day after tomorrow to fix the chicken haus. You must be nice to him.”

      Mary slapped one hand to her cheek. “You’re right. There’s no time to lose. I’ll marry him straightaway. If he doesn’t fall through that rickety roof and squish all our chickens.”

      She shook her head and began stirring again. “Go out with Delbert Miller? Not in a hundred years.”

      “I know he is en adlichah grohsah mann, but you should not hold that against him.”

      Mary rolled her eyes. “A fairly big man? Nee, he is a very big man.”

      “And are you such a prize that you can judge him harshly?”

      Mary stopped stirring and stared at the cuffs of her long sleeves. No matter how hot it got in the summer, she never rolled them up. They covered the scars on her wrists. The jagged white lines in her flesh were indisputable evidence that she had attempted suicide, the ultimate sin. Shame washed over her. “Nee, I’m not a prize.”

      A second later, she was smothered in a hug that threatened to coat her in batter. “Forgive me, child. That is not what I meant. You know that. You are the light in this old woman’s heart and your dear dochder is the sun and the stars.”

      Mary closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

       God spared my life. He has forgiven my sins. I am loved and treasured by the new family He gave me. Bad things happened years ago, but those things gave me my beautiful child. She is happy here, as I dreamed she would be. I will not dwell in that dark СКАЧАТЬ